


Anchorage: Part 2

by justinsbuzz



Series: Celestial Connverse-gence arc [9]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst, Creepy, Drama, F/F, F/M, Fighting, Gen, Race Against Time, Tears
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-19
Updated: 2019-08-19
Packaged: 2020-09-07 13:02:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20309941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justinsbuzz/pseuds/justinsbuzz
Summary: Steven and the crystal gems race against the clock, with the help from an unlikely new ally, for the search of Obsidian, as well as the downed “doomsday” pod. The closer they get to finding them, the more secrets are revealed, binding everything to a close. But when they get there, and see the situation, will one of them have to take one for the team, or will they all make it out alive?





	Anchorage: Part 2

**Author's Note:**

> Right...so. This has some angst. Or maybe i'm using the wrong word. It has emotion. Feeling? It's got some heavy stuff that made me really look into myself as a human being and ponder the decisions i've made in my past and how i could even comprehend overcoming them. i can't really describe it. but i will say this:
> 
> WARNING: Contains poorly written fight scenes, emotional drama that makes a person rethink a character, crying (like, even Jasper is crying. when that happens, you KNOW things get heavy), Aquamarine and her creapy-as-hell grin, (I don't think i need to put any more emphasis on how big of a warning that is!), Navy, on fire, and on purpose. and finally a ton of feral Obsidian's that brings a new definition of creepy.
> 
> all of these are the reason why I'm publishing it at 2:40 A.M. PST, and not during daylight hours. 
> 
> Major Advice: have some ice-cream, or mac and cheese, or some form of comfort food. maybe tissues, perhaps?

Anchorage: Part 2 :

Steven stood in front of the Diamond’s cave. This place had changed much since The Diamonds sought refuge here as a new home. Where the water and tides use to be, were large done hexagon tiles, lifted up from the ocean floor, and leading its way across the shore, and to the north of beach city. There were statues of pearls near the entrance of the pathway. The statue of one of the pearls, who looks like Yellow Pearl, held a sign that forbade humans entrance. And another statue, one of Blue Pearl, kindly asked anyone entering the pathway to please be cautious, for the pathway could be slippery. each tile of the pathway, as well as the entrance, were nearly 30 feet across, and efficient enough to keep the high tide at bay from the entrance. The outer entrance was adorned with Gem writing, detailing the heroism and defiance against White Diamond, and their love for their newfound freedom. On the top of the corner bases of the archway were relief carvings of the busts of Blue and Yellow Diamond, with the 1:1 scale statue of Steven, holding an orb that looked like Earth. 

To the left literally stood the leg ship, now with a few upgrades. Slightly larger, but flatter feet for stability as well as easier takeoff. The legs were padded for extra armor around the ankle and knees. The entire ship was transformed from being elegant, to something more practical as well as durable. Even the base where the legs stood were more durable for softer landing, and more visible, if Steven ever wanted to take it out for a spin. And every so often, someone would take the leg ship and leave for a week, coming back with slightly more gem tech, as well as some aesthetic shards of crystals from their respected colonies. Giving it a couple years, Steven could see this as a new trading post between earth, and who knows where else.

But right now, as much as he would love to admire the architecture, He and the Crystal Gems had a job to do; find Obsidian, the drop pod, and stop them from emerging from their gems. There was no time to waste. Steven and the Crystal Gems marched into the cavern and noticed many of the remaining courts of their respected Diamonds, who would usually talking among themselves about interesting locations to visit on Earth, were now whispering nervously. They looked either worried, or terrified. But once they noticed the Crystal gems marching in, some had felt a sense of hope.

The Diamonds, who were in an alcove which some considered as the conference and throne chamber, could be herd audibly arguing among themselves.

“Damn that mad, Mad defected GEM!” roared Blue Diamond. Steven had never heard her sound so angry. Or at least not since the wedding. “Of course, she would pick this time, of ALL TIMES, to forcefully activate the obsidians!”

Entering the chamber, Blue Diamond was furiously pacing the length of the room. A few hot tears had streaked down her face. the other gems sensed this, but none of them were crying. Instead, they felt more agitated than they did before. Yellow, on the other hand, had her thumb and index finger massaging the bridge of her nose, looking both agitated, and also trying to keep composure. 

“We should have known that it would only be a matter of time before she remembered the Obsidian Gems.” Yellow moaned. “I mean, on one hand, you’d think a crazed lunatic like White would have just completely forgot all about them. The drop ship did its job, but the stones were a dud. But who knows! They might not even acti-”

Yellow stopped speaking the moment she lifted her head up to see the Crystal Gems standing in the entry way. Blue, who had been facing Yellow at that moment, slowly turned around to see them as well. they were frozen in silence, and looked as though the color was draining from their gems, and were becoming ice statues. Steven had to say something.

“I already know.” Steven said flatly. “I also know that you had no control over what White was doing. Grief could cause someone to be either quick to be angry, or fall into despair, or just simply crack!”

“So you know about Homeworld too?” blue asked nervously.

“the reason why it literally cracked?” Steven asked, before slowly nodding. “Yeah. Pretty much. Why White was creating the Obsidian army, the sacrifices she made, how far she was willing to go to either end the rebellion, or get vengeance. I know all of it now.”

Both diamonds looked crestfallen and saddened. Only Yellow diamond could look Steven in the eye, as Blue turned away to try to hold herself together.

“We could probably get the entire town into the leg ship. Some of the amethysts will have to stay behind to fight as many of the obsidian's as possible after they emerge and make their way towards beach city.” Yellow told Steven, looking stern and tactful. “If we could find a suitable habitat for them sooner rather than later, we could come back to get more humans.”

Steven was stunned by what Yellow was saying. He had to interject

“Actually, as much as I love you for the fact that you would be willing to help get as many humans off of the planet as possible in case of a huge emergency, I have a better plan in mind.” Steven said, smiling slightly. It gave him a good feeling about Yellow adapting and warming up to humans. “I need to ask you if I may borrow the leg ship to find the drop pod, and stop them from emerging.”

Blue slowly turned around with a bemused look on her face, while Yellow looked completely confused.

“Um…Steven. one; you don’t have to ask for permission to use your leg ship. In fact, we should have been asking you.” Yellow said, realizing what they had been doing.

“We’re really sorry about that.” Blue apologized, smiling innocently. “It’s just that you never used it…and we needed some things from some of our colonies…”

“In other words, yes you may. Forever.” Yellow said, sounding embarrassed.

‘Amethyst, Connie, and I could have been exploring planets all last summer.’ Steven muttered to himself in disbelief. He shook himself out of it, and focused on the matter at hand. But before he could say anything, Yellow continued.

“But second: I…don’t think there’s really anything you could do.” Yellow Diamond spoke, with a slight grimace on her face. “You see, Steven, obsidians are not like other gems. They’re a little more…volatile. Dangerous. They’re-”

“Made of dark matter, rubies, sapphires, quartz's, pearls. Obsidian had already given me the rundown.” Steven said. The look on the Diamonds face had returned them to the state of shock and confusion.

“’Obsidian had already given you a rundown’?” Blue Diamond asked, looking more panicked by the second. “You met an actual Obsidian? Face to face, and it wasn’t just you lot fused together?”

“Well…. yeah.” Steven said, shrugging his shoulders. “She was at the pool party. Don’t you remember?”

Both diamonds slowly shook their heads, still in shock.

“She was small? looked black, grey, and white? Wore a cloak?” Steven attempted to describe her. “She looked like Connie?”

“Wha…wait. That, THAT, was an Obsidian?” Blue asked in disbelief. “That smol cutie bean?”

“I…I had a conversation with her.” Yellow said, wincing as she remembers more of the moment. “She told me she was Randalite. Those things don’t exist! And I freaking believed her?!”

Both Blue and Yellow looked at each other momentarily, and turned their attention to Steven.

“Well…” Blue started to speak, but had become unsure as to what to say. She turned towards Yellow to see if she would like to step in.

“Steven…If that was truly an Obsidian.” Yellow spoke, trying to piece the words together. “Then you have our support to go and stop the reemerging Obsidian gems.”

Under his breath, Steven hissed ‘yes’, but only before Yellow called out to the gems in main cavern.

“Jasper!” Yellow called out into the main caverns. Steven’s hope that this would end peacefully the moment the large, orange and yellow gem walked into the chamber.

“My Di-” Jasper started to say before realizing that that’s not how things are anymore. Yellow, looking down at Jasper, had a single eyebrow lifted in curiosity as to how she’s going to great her old boss now. “Um…what’s shaken…home…girl?”

“Good effort. You’ll get the hang of it someday.” Yellow diamond said with a slightly amused look on her face. “I need you to go with Steve-”

Yellow also stopped in her tracks as the Crystal Gems looked at her with the same look she had on her face moments before.

“What..what I mean to say is, could you go with them to…THAT place?” Yellow said, switching her demand to a question. She was also trying to find the words to explain gently what was going on. “It would be OK if you say no. I know that place-”

“Yes.” Jasper said flatly in a low tone. her eyes drooped downwards. “I’ll go with them. It’s something I need to correct. To set things right. I’ll make sure to help in any capacity I can in stopping them from reforming.”

Jasper briefly looked over at Steven, who was expecting to see her look furious. Instead, he saw regret in her eyes. 

‘How are you involved in all of this?’ Steven thought to himself. ‘what do you need to set right.’

Jasper’s eyes fell back on Yellow Diamond, remembering one crucial thing that she needed to ask..

“My Di- I mean, Yellow, there have been rumors circulating the main hall about the…THEM…is White Diamond using one of the obsidians to help those things reform?” Jasper asked. “Is there anything I should tell them?”

Steven never gave the thought that Obsidian could have had an ulterior motive in going to Anchorage. Could she have been working with White Diamond the whole time. The idea was soon stamped out with the rational thought of how Obsidian had spent months training Steven and Connie in the dreamscape to fight White Diamond once and for all. Plus, if she really did work for White Diamond, then why would she even tell Steven anything? Questions and doubt continued to swirl around in Stevens head while he tried to stay on task.

“Let them know that there is nothing to worry about.” Blue Diamond spoke, trying to crack a smile, while still looking nervous. “Tell them that it’s just a rumor, and that we will be investigating it.”

“Of course, Blue.” Jasper said bluntly. She turned back out into the hall.

“Are you sure you won’t come?” Steven asked Blue and Yellow Diamond. “We could use the extra muscle.”

Blue and Yellow looked unsure.

“As much as we want to, Steven, I don’t think that would be a good idea.” Yellow said. “If you are correct in saying that White Diamond is trying to awaken them telepathically…well…”

“You would be a liability.” Steven finished her sentence. “if she has the ability to get into peoples heads, or even control them from vast distances, she would control you both.”

“Yes. But she won’t be able to control you though.” Blue said, kneeling down to talk to Steven. “You’re part human. That would be the part which keeps her from getting in too deep.”

“Because that’s the strongest part of me?” Steven asked with a smile.

“Well…more like the fact that she’s really fickle about dealing with organics.” Yellow said, walking towards Steven and kneeling down with Blue. “But as long as the crystal gems and jasper are with you, we have faith that you will keep them from emerging.”

“Thank you, both.” Steven said with a worried smile. “Hopefully I won’t let you down. Speaking of, up?”

Steven lifted his arms up in the air as Blue gently picked him up and brought him close to their faces for a small hug.

“You won’t Steven.” Yellow said, accepting a farewell hug from Steven.

“And also….did you…grow a neck?” Blue asked, looking carefully at Steven. He had grown somewhat taller in the past year. So far, though, he and Connie are neck and neck…..no pun intended.

After Blue gushing about how much Steven had grown, he and The crystal gems made their way out of the cavern. Jasper was already standing right next to the leg ship as soon as they arrived.

The trip going to the area where Anchorage would be only took a few moments, but finding the exact spot took a few hours.

“Man.” Amethyst sighed as she laid on top of an unamused Jaspers mane. “I know it was over 5 thousand years ago, but how can it be this difficult to find an ancient city?”

“A long time, actually.” Pearl said, personally piloting the leg ship after Steven needed the rest. “Anchorage was a decent sized city, but between the initial impact of the dropship, and time, nature would have reclaimed half of what was left.”

“And to be honest…there wasn’t much left.” Jasper said, glossing over the monitor and keeping an eye on the surrounding for any signs of where it could have landed. “The dropship used wasn’t the kind that was meant to gently land anywhere. They designed it to cause as much damage as possible…and…it succeeded.”

Steven was sitting next to jasper, giving his legs a rest, when he began to feel a twinge of pain from his stomach. It was either because he skipped lunch, or it was as though the pain came from his gem. He had questions. The kind he didn’t want to hear the answers to, but they were answers he needed.

“Jasper…” Steven spoke quietly. He started to feel lightheaded in fear. “How…how do you know about all of this? Where the city was? What happened? Why do you know these things?”

Jasper grew pale. She clutched her fists tightly as she spoke.

“When…when I worked as your….mom’s quartz solder…I was tasked with keeping guard around the area of the city…” Jasper spoke. Trying to keep her voice steady. “I was tasked with making sure the humans didn’t try pulling anything like they did…in the initial invasion.”

Nothing could be heard inside the bridge of the ship, except Steven’s heartbeat. The air was thick with tension, and Steven was struck with fear.

“You guarded them.” Steven said, keeping a steady voice.

“Just like the Amethyst Quartz's at the Zoo.” Amethyst said. Steven was glad to hear another voice apart from his own. Pearl focused as hard as she could on piloting the ship. This didn’t stop her from looking terrified. Garnet, on the other hand, walked out of the room as gracefully as she could, fists clutching and eyes watering behind her glasses.

“Yeah. Like them. Kind of.” Jasper answered, looking up at Amethyst, who wiped away a tear from her face. “Pink Diamond…My Diamond, your mom, she loved native habitats and life on other planets. Nothing fascinated her more than humans. She would sometimes come up to where I was monitoring them from a cave, and she would just sit and watch them in awe. I may not have felt the same enthusiasm as she did, but I don’t think too many gems could. She was kind. Nicer than other Diamonds.”

Dry eyes were vacant in the area near Jasper and Steven. Jasper kept moving forward.

“Things were quiet there. I would order a few Amethysts to roam around the outside area of the city to make sure they weren’t trying anything suspicious.” Jasper spoke, her voice shaking a little. “I would find out that some of the Amethyst Quartz's would go and talk with them. The humans. A lot of them did. They hung out, and laughed with them. and…they had to be rotated out. Not because of Pink, but because she was heavily supervised by Blue and Yellow Diamond. Rotation orders came from them. I think a couple of Rose Quartz's were thrown into the mix as well…you mother loved hanging around them.”

Steven could sense a sense of calm from Jasper. Something he never thought he would get from her. But it changed from peace, to torment.

“When…when I had heard about what had happened…I was shattered. Broken. Hollow.” Jasper said in a shaky voice. “I saw Pink Diamond as a friend. As someone I could just talk to without feeling the need to stand at attention. And when I heard about what had happened. An order came for me to track a proper landing zone. I thought they were just going to take all of the humans…take them to the zoo…”

Jasper had a two-thousand-yard stare in her eyes. Steven could see the conflict in her eyes as though she was watching a movie play out. Tears streaked down her face.

“I…I didn’t know.” Jasper mumbled. “It was so instant. So bright. I didn’t know…what they wanted of me. What was landing. What was crashing…right…there.”

She looked ahead at the monitor, and saw a strange looking valley. The trees were growing diagonally away from the center of the valley that was dusted with the early fall snow. More notably, they were all mostly pointing towards the ocean to the west, which had already frozen over, and the Sun was indicating that it was late afternoon, they didn’t have much time to find the ship. It had not taken more than a few minutes of looking over the valley before seeing a strange object sticking out of the foothills to the east.

“There…it- it’s there.” Jasper mumbled, pointing at the strange object sticking out of the ground. It looked to be a small part of a drop-ship, sticking out of the ground. “Land…just west to it. We’re not sure if…”

Jasper trailed off. Steven and Amethyst could feel the conflict and emotion boiling inside of her. Steven had the full story. His mom’s death had taken a toll on more than just the Gems who fought there, but the humans who were in the way. Steven, being Steven, did the most Steven thing he could do; he got up, and hugged Jasper’s side. The cascade of tears rolled down her face as he did this. Amethyst joined in, as well as Pearl as soon as she landed the ship.

“It wasn’t your fault, Jasper.” Steven told her. “You protected humans for the longest time. You were used by White Diamond, just like everyone else. It wasn’t your fault.”

Jasper instinctively felt a sense of relief aster hearing Steven’s words. It was as though she was hearing Pink Diamond all over again.

“Th…thank you. Steven.” Jasper said, trying to wipe away the tears. Having Steven and Amethyst on both sides hugging her proved to offer a problem in this ability. Pearl hugging her neck was the least problematic of the three gems. “We…we should go. Who knows what’s happening near the entrance of the ship?”

They let go of each other and made their way to the exit. Going through the door that lead into the ships bridge, they had bumped into Garnet. She looked disappointed.

“You guys did a group cry-hug, didn’t you?” Garnet asked flatly. Jasper, at that point, walked up to Garnet and wrapped her arms tightly around her, lifting her up from the ground in a bear hug. After a few seconds, she released.

“There, now you’re all caught up.” Jasper said, gently putting Garnet down. “Now let’s go find us an Obsidian!”

“Wooooo! Obsidian Hunting with meh sis!” Amethyst cheered as she climbed on Jaspers back. “We Ride!”

And through no other reason but the fact that they’ve been hanging out too much, Jasper got on all 4’s and galloped towards the exit of the ship.

The scene outside of the drop-ship was an unexpected one. Where they were hoping to see Obsidian, standing outside of the ship, waiting for the Crystal Gems, they instead saw Obsidian fighting against two other Gems. One was small, blue, and fluttering around. Another was nearly equally small, red, and zooming around Obsidian at breakneck speed, leaving behind a slight trail of fire. Steven couldn’t believe his eyes as they charged up the hill, towards a clearing, surrounded by trees, and strange pillars of rust and concrete.

“You had one job, you pathetic pebble!” The blue one growled, wearing a few bruises on her arms and cheek near her gem. “Infiltrate! Neutralize! Awaken and reform the obsidian's! It’s harder for me to even say that sentence than it would be to do the job FOR YOU!”

“And yet…” Obsidian spoke in between breaths, while still swinging her blade. “You couldn’t either. And there’s no way I’ll ever let you lay a hand on one of my star pupils.”

“Don’t you only have one pupil, though!?” The Red one yelled as she attempts to charge at her with fists of fire. “Maybe we should change that?!”

“what…Navy?! Aquamarine?!” Steven yelled accidentally, eliminating the element of secrecy and surprise for the Crystal Gems. Then again, Jaspers immense size would have done that for them eventually. Both Navy and Aquamarine turned to look, giving Obsidian an opening to roundhouse kick Ruby in the back of her head, hard enough to cause her to go flying towards the far end of the clearing.

“Well…well…well… If it isn’t ‘My Dad’. Or was it ‘My Mom’” The sinister voice of Aquamarine chimed into Steven’s head like a bad song, long forgotten. She looked down at Steven with a sickening twisted grin that haunted his and Connie’s dreams for the longest time. “At one point, you got the better of me. But only briefly. That will not happen again, Pink Diamond, the Traitor of Homeworld!”

“Well that n-” Steven began to speak before she grabbed Obsidian with her holographic wand and flung her at Steven. It would have knocked him off his feet and down the hill, If it weren’t for Garnet, who caught her with one of her large gauntlets. “Still rude, I see.”

“Thanks, Garnet.” Obsidian said, turning back towards Aquamarine, who was sizing up the group.

“Wow…still hanging with these rejects I see.” Aquamarine said, finally laying her eyes on Jasper, who looked as though she was ready to pounce. Aquamarine blushed. “And who’s THIS little cutie?”

Jasper was both stunned and disgusted.

“Um, ok. One: just eww. No. I don’t do small-n-crazy.” Jasper growled, retaining her battle composure. “And two: I ain’t small, you blue-berry bi-”

“JASPER!” Navy screeched from their right near the edge of the forest. “Is..Is that really…but why?”

“You…look familiar. I’ve met rubies before, but I think I remember you.” Jasper said, thinking hard. “You were kinda creepy.”

Navy had boiling hot tears streaking down her face in anger.

“You…you abandoned us…to work with THEM! THE ENEMY! THAT TRAITOR!” Navy howled. Steven remembered the last time he saw her. She never showed any other emotion beyond flirtatious and innocent. She had become feral. “You were our leader! We trusted you. We would have followed you to the event horizon if needed. But…now you’re… you… you… FILTHY CRYSTAL GEM!”

“STAND DOWN, NAVY!” Jasper commanded, remembering that Rubies were one of the most loyal gems in the empire. She used this as an advantage. “That’s an order! I don’t want to fight you!”

Navy’s face went from snarling, to a sickening grin. One Steven had seen before.

“That’s funny.” Navy said through gritted teeth, chuckling madly. “Cause that’s all I want to do to you!”

“STAND DOWN!” Jasper hollered. “THAT’S AN ORDER, RUBY!”

Navy crouched down slightly, and charged towards Jasper, turning into a ball of fire with legs.

“I don’t take any orders from you anymore!” Navy yelled, running at full speed.

“Garnet and I can take this lunatic! The rest of you go after the blue one!” Jasper said, widening her stance and preparing for impact. “And do go one at a time. Aqua Marines are powerful, but they’re not the best multi-taskers!”

At that moment, Navy had hit Jasper hard enough to cause her to slide a few feet backwards. Steven, Amethyst, pearl and Obsidian moved in towards Aquamarine, who seem to be studying them.

“I’ve taken you all on before.” Aquamarine growled through gritted teeth. “And I can do it…what…are you two doing?”

Steven and Obsidian were confused momentarily by Aquamarine’s question, but were given an answer when they saw a bright flash of light behind them. Walking up from behind them was Opal, a sight for sore eyes.

“Oh man. You’re in for it now!” Obsidian said as Opal produced her new bow, which was once a longbow, now a shorter re-curve bow.

“I…missed you a lot.” Steven mumbled under her breath, while looking up at her. Opal smiled softly before drawing 4 brightly glowing arrows at once.

“That’s right. Giant woman in the house!” Opal howled before firing all 4 arrows at once towards Aquamarine. Aquamarine had dodged them successfully before grabbing a hold of one of the fallen trees near by with her wand, and throwing it at Opal. And just before the flying log got anywhere near Opal, a dark grey blur shifted around them, and jumped high enough to slice the log into multiple pieces, gently falling to the ground. Angered that her attack didn’t work, she didn’t notice Steven throwing a shield at her until it struck her side. The fight had truly begun.

A solid 10 minutes of fighting had gone on before it came to a close. 10 full minutes of two large gems, who were once enemies, now fighting against a very angry and furious ruby, who seems to be trying to set fire to the surrounding area. Meanwhile, Obsidian had pounced between Navy and Aquamarine, trying to find an opening to knock one or the other off their feet, and give the Crystal Gems a fighting chance. Opal, trying her best, was basically fighting a crazed blue bee. The arrows she had been shooting flew too slow for them to hit Aquamarine. All while Steven threw his shield so many times, and so fiercely, trying to lay in a hit that his arms had felt like overcooked noodles, and were to fall off at any minute. Light smoke began to rise from some of the smaller fires caused by Navy furious attacks. Finally, one of the Gems had enough.

Jasper, in a fit of annoyance, fiercely grabbed Navy by the face and lifted her up. The amount of heat Navy was producing could have rival the heat from a ball of lava. As Jasper raised the ruby in the air, she let out a loud howl and tears welled up in her eyes.

“GAH!” Jasper roared loudly. “This Ruby is made of fire!”

As though Jasper was throwing a shot-put as far as possible, she swung around nearly a dozen times before throwing Navy right into Aquamarine, giving out a deep and booming ‘yeet’. As though time had slowed down, Steven saw Aquamarine, staring dumbfounded at Navy, who seemed to be flying faster than the speed of sound. And in a flash, Navy and Aquamarine were knocked back into the entrance of the dropship with such force, they poofed on impact, leaving scorch marks showing the silhouette of Aquamarine and Navy. Their gems fell from the side of the ship, and down onto the ground. Navy’s gem melted the snow it landed on, and scorched the grass beneath it, while Aquamarines gem sat upright in the snow. As though it was purposefully staring right at Steven.

Steven picked up and stared at the gem with brooding anger. This gem had brought so much pain and suffering to him. To so many other beings. He knew of the mistakes he made, and how they haunt him every so often. But he couldn’t help but have so much anger for such a small piece of stone the size of his pinky. For a moment, a dark thought entered his mind. The gem that sat in his hand looked brittle. As though if he were to close his hand tight enough…

“You know, with some plastic flakes, and some water, you could make a really cool snow globe for Connie.” Obsidian said, joining him at his side, looking down at the gem. “I think for safe keeping, I should hold on…wait…hold on. Look.”

Obsidian stared deeply into the gem. Following her gaze, Steven stared into it as well. something was amiss. The color of the gem, which was suppose to be a vibrant blue, was lighter in color than usual. But after a few moments, they notice the color becoming deeper, as though someone was dimming the lights.

“Hey Garnet. Do you have Navy’s gem?” Obsidian asked garnet, turning around to see if she had it in her hands. Navy’s gem was still hot, but was also glowing slightly lighter in garnet’s hands. For a brief moment, comparing Navy’s ruby with Garnet’s, it definitely was lighter in color, but fading back to normal.

“Do…do you think White Diamond was…well…you know.” Obsidian asked Garnet.

“We don’t have a lot of time. I can sense them getting restless.” Garnet said, looking at the door to the ship. “We got to get in there to stop them somehow.”

“Agreed.” Obsidian nodded, then turning to Steven. “Did you bring it? The puzzle thingy?”

“The dodecahedron?” Steven asked, remembering that he gave it to pearl so she could keep it safe. “Pearl?”

Opal unfused so Pearl could pull out Steven’s old cheeseburger backpack. She handed it over to Steven, who opened it up to reveal the strange object, that had started to glow.

“Excellent. And good thing that you kept it in the back pack, or else it would have gone off.” Obsidian spoke cheerfully as she left the rest of the Crystal Gems in a state of confusion, as always. “Welp, time to get to work! After you Steven! Or, maybe Jasper could open it. She was the one who was suppose to open it after it crashed landed. Or was it suppose to open from the inside. I forget. Oh well, press on!”

Steven, feeling lost, continued to move forward, and jumping up to where the gem scanner was. He didn’t have to let the scanner go too long before It swiftly opened the door. He produced his shield in case something jumped out, just as a precaution. Instead, all there was, was echoes from the door opening. The gems cautiously moved closure to the opening, with Jasper standing in front of Amethyst as though she was trying to protect her. Suddenly, Obsidian moved through the group and went through the entrance. The dropship had crashed into the hillside at a slight angle, meaning that they would have to be careful going in.

As they entered, the cavernous interior was very much reminiscent to the crashed jungle ship. The only difference is the walls, absent of etchings of symbols and pictures of the Diamonds. The ground was a mat grey, and sounding hollow, as though the ground would give way at any moment. The only thing that would light the area was an old lantern pearl had produced. The further and deeper they went, the more hairs on the back of Steven’s neck stood as though they want to jump off, and the more unusual things got, especially the shapes of the stones. Rows and rows of hallways, and chambers filled with cubby holes, each one containing a black stone. Where Obsidian’s gem was perfectly oval, some were of strange, and impossible shapes. And every time they would get close to an obsidian gem, it would start to hum or rattle. The sooner they all got out of there, the better.

Finally, they had made it to the center of the ship. There was no cockpit to be found. No large consoles. Just a singular large pillar, with a small console in the middle. Not needing to be told, Steven stayed away from it, just in case it picks up on his gem and does something no one there wants it to do. Obsidian still held on to the multicolored dodecahedron, which was now glowing brightly, colors shifting from one spectrum to another. Standing behind Garnet and Bismuth, he asked a question everyone was thinking about.

“What is that thing?” Steven asked. “I mean, it has to be more than just some puzzle ball. Why did you want me to bring it?”

“Oh, yeah. before I say anything, Steven, do you still have the note with the stickers?” Obsidian asked, slowly shifting the sides around, causing the colors to shift mostly from multicolored, to a bright yellow. Steven dug around in his pockets and handed it over to Obsidian. She immediately took the last one of the crying waffle stickers, stuck it on her gem, and proceeded to answer the question. “Right. So. This is a bomb.”

“Wait! WHAT?!” everyone exclaimed in unison.

“well, for one, nice harmony. Way to bring the baritone, Jasper. And second, yes, a bomb. Not the explosive type. It’s something a little different.” Obsidian answered, sticking two more stickers carefully on certain parts of the bomb. “You know those fun little stick things? Gem Destabilizers? Kind of acts like that, but with more of an area-of-effect, and a bigger punch to make sure these things stay in their gem forms until they can be safely moved elsewhere.”

“How long would it keep the others from reforming?” Pearl asked nervously.

“Well, for these ones, since I don’t think they’ve materialized yet, about 1000 years.” Obsidian answered casually, as though she was talking about bus schedules. “But for any full fledge gems that have been out and about…. maybe somewhere between a month to a decade.”

Every Crystal Gem in the ship shifted uncomfortably where they stood, as though a wave of cold water rushed over them. In a dire need of comfort, Steven reached for a couple of hands to hold. He found one in the hand of Jasper, who’s hand was large and strong. The other hand had to be Garnet’s, due to her slender fingers and a gem stone in it. It felt unusually smooth. Then again, it had been a while since he needed to hold her hand.

“If that thing is going to explode, then why did you bring us down here?!” Amethyst exclaimed, looking for an answer immediately. Obsidian turned around, looking slightly annoyed.

“Well, technically, I should of just asked for the stickers and the bomb, but many of you didn’t have…to…come?” Obsidian tried to answer, but was fixated on Garnet. Or more importantly, what was crouched behind her. Holding Steven’s hand.

“Oh…my…OK. Fun time is over, Run time is now. Like, Right now.” Obsidian said, looking terrified.

When Steven turned around, letting go of Jasper’s hand, he swore he saw something rolling around the corner of one of the hallways.

“Was…was that an Ob-” Steven began to nervously ask before being cut off by Obsidian.

“Seriously. You all need to go. Right. Freaking. Now!” Obsidian commanded, still shifting the sides of the bomb. Pearl and Amethyst lead the way, with Jasper in tow. Garnet grabbed Steven’s hand, and attempted to led him away from the area. Steven wasn’t ready.

“No. We’re not leaving you!” Steven yelled.

“Steven, the bomb isn’t set just yet.” Obsidian spoke frantically, shifting the sides faster and sticking stickers on some of the cracks. “Just get out of here. I’ll…I’ll be fine. Remember this sticker. They’re beginning to emerge and if you don’t get out soon, they’re going to start eating you guys alive! Now go! Run you sweet fool! RUN!”

Garnet jerked Stevens hand with her. He forgot how strong she was. Every bone and muscle in his body were at war with each other between running, and saving Obsidian.

‘I’ll…I’ll be fine.’ Obsidian’s voice echoed in his mind. His thoughts came into fruition. ‘Will you? Will you be alright?’

“She’s going to be fine, Steven!” Garnet yelled, screaming down the halls while holding tightly to Steven’s hand. “We only have a few moments! Keep going!”

Steven believed her. Or maybe, he wanted to believe her. To believe in someone. Something. There’s no telling what would happen to her. He felt as helpless as he did when he had nightmares of White Diamond. Thoughts of doubt and fear of going against her had filled Stevens mind. All he could think about was the future, when the present is falling down around him.

As they approached the exit, row after row, he would see a pair of sickly yellow eyes gunning him down. They were emerging. Steven could sense their hunger. With that in mind, he began to run almost as fast as Garnet. An impressive feat, even for him. He and Garnet, still holding hands could not only see the exit clearly, but smell it as well. the small cinders from the fight had caused a few trees to catch fire. And at the exit, three heads appeared to look back. Jasper and Peal looked on in horror as the kept screaming for them to keep running. From behind them, they could hear something. Footsteps. Dozens of them. Faint, but getting louder. But over the din of the many footsteps that echoes behind them came a voice screaming out.

“Over here, you nightmare fuel rejects!” Obsidian could be heard from behind them. “You want to come after someone, come at me, you freaks! Scratch that, come to US!”

“Let me go you pebble!” A familiar voice rang out. Aquamarine had apparently reformed. “You’re a complete lunatic if you think this is going to work!”

“Yeah…well…. It’s good to be something, I guess!” Obsidian said, chuckling loudly.

Ahead of them, Steven and Garnet saw Amethyst produce two whips.

“Amethyst!” Pearl screeched. “What on earth are you doing?!”

“Those things are on their heels! They’re not going to make it at that speed!” Amethyst yelled back as she threw her whips around both of them, and pulled them out 10 times faster than they could have ran. This had flung them a few feet further than anticipated, but they still landed in what little snow there was left in the clearing. Amethysts released the whips, allowing Steven to get up and look back.

“No…I…I can’t leave her down there!” Steven yelled as he charged towards the entrance. Jasper and Pearl attempted to block him unsuccessfully. But before Steven could jump near the opening, Amethyst tackled him from behind, and not a moment later. That was when he heard a voice coming from the inside of the ship.

“DING DING, YA CREEPS!” Obsidian roared from within. “DINNERS FREAKING SER-”.

In an instant, there was only a loud, high pitched hum, and a blinding large beam of light shooting straight out of the ship. The snow on top of the ship shook away by the high pitch hum and the vibration that occurred from it. The snow from further up the hillside, and even the mountain, began to slide down in a minor avalanche. The bright light and loud hum stopped physically, but the ringing continued in his head. For a few moment’s he had thought he had gone deaf. It was a huge relief when, while disoriented, he heard the muffled sound of Garnet’s voice.

“Get off of him! We need to go back in there and find her gem!” Garnet spoke, though only mostly muffled to Steven. Amethyst got up, and helped Steven up as well. Steven surrounding seemed to have slowed down. The other gems were moving slowly, sound was still muffled, and yet he was able to still stand. Things snapped back into normalcy when a large orange hand clasped his shoulder.

“Steven!” Jasper yelled. “Steven, we’re running out of time. Snap out of it and move!”

Jasper grabbed Steven and helped him get up into the entrance of the ship, which now looked startlingly different. It felt like an oven in there, pieces of the floor were chipped away, and pieces of the ceiling were hanging down. All surfaces were painfully hot, but to Steven, it was an incentive to keep moving. All over the ground, or what little ground is left, were obsidian gems, completely inert and no longer humming. The startling aspect of going down through the blisteringly hot hallways was how many of those gems on the ground were so close to the exit. Or even how many there were. He couldn’t think. Not for a second. A common mistake, as he accidentally slips on a stone, and slid down the hot hallway. No less than a second later, be slides right into Pearl and knocking her over.

“Gah.” Steven moaned. “Sorry, Pearl!”

Pearl rolled over onto her side and helped Steven up. Amethyst and Jasper were combing through the pile near the pillar. There were so many strange obsidian gems piled one on top of the other. Steven lunged in, throwing aside any stone that didn’t have a sticker on it.

“She knew!” Steven growled, tears rolling down his cheek. “She knew this would happen. The entire time!”

“If she had known, then she knew that you would find the stone with the sticker.” Pearl said, carefully placing every stone she found aside. “She…she knew she would be OK…somehow. She had to have known.”

“How is this ok?!” Amethyst yelled, digging through the pile like a determined dog. “Everything is on fire. This place feels like it’s going to collapse at any moment, and we’re digging through a pile of gems created be nightmare fuel! How is any of this oka-”

“IT’S NOT!” Pearl snapped. Her hands slowly buried themselves under the pile of gem stones. Everyone around her looked up to see tears going down her cheek. “This! All of this! It was HER fault!”

No one needed context on who she was talking about.

“She wanted to run away instead of talking about it to the others! She did! She wanted to destroy her identity by having me shape-shift into rose to shatter her?! Mission accomplished, my Diamond! MISSION! FREAKING! ACCOMPLISHED!” Pearl roared throwing some of the obsidian stones at a near by wall with enough force to crack the wall she hit. Everyone around her was stunned. Jasper, on the other hand, felt a deep sense of empathy for Pearl. Enough to cause tears to well up. Steven turned back to the pile to see a crying waffle sticker, poking out of the pile.

“THERE!” Steven exclaimed, snatching the perfectly shaped spheroid, as well as a small, blue gem shaped like a tear drop. “We got them. Let’s go!”

The four of them charged up the inclined hall to the exit. As they did, Amethyst, for the first time in a long while, used her shape-shifting abilities, to shoot out one of her hands towards the entrance, and grabbed on to the frame. She used her other arm to wrap around the others, and flung herself forward, out through the entrance, and transformed into a parachute to help them land safely after being shot up 40 feet in the smoke-filled air. On the ground, most of the fire had been put out by Sapphire using her ice powers, and Ruby with her ‘stamp-out-the-fire’ technique. It was the teamwork that mattered.

With feet firmly planted on the ground, he looked around him. The area used to have lush, green trees all around. The snow on the hill was pristine, and begging to have someone to slide down it. But now, everything had changed. All the snow that was there was gone now. A few patches of grass, mud, ash, and dead trees all around him. With most of the trees gone, Steven saw the truth. Chunks of rubble, steel, and rebar strewn the area. The side of a building, jutting upwards into the now barren sky. All these things. Painful things. Visual symbolization of the cost of both vengeance, and for setting the wrong things right. There’s always a cost to these things. To dispense vengeance is to pay a high price for an empty painting. To forgive is to open the eyes to a sky full of stars, and the lack of burden it comes with. Steven thought these things as he looked around him. The sun had set, and a full moon rise, shining a mute light upon a scarred landscape, as well as the tear that ran down his face. a slight hum was heard coming from behind him. He turned to be face to face with Garnet.

“Steven…” Garnet spoke softly, wiping away the single tear on his face. instinctively, he lunges in for a hug, in which everyone else joined in, reeling from the day’s events.

“Let’s go home.” Steven said, surrounded by his friends and family.

**Author's Note:**

> Well...for the brave souls that made it through that labyrinth of horror; *hugs*. It was a hard thing to write, and the next story won't be any easier.
> 
> And for those who just skipped to this part....up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, Why? It was the beginning notes wasn't it? What kind of writer warns readers not to read their work? It's been a rough week. And also *hugs*, it's rough all over. but, yeah, next story: Steven breaks the news to Connie about the events in Anchorage, and all the things that led up to that point. He also reconciles with some gems who need some love, and looks for new recruits in his fight with White Diamond. 'The things left behind'.


End file.
